On how to Improve one’s Oral / Spoken English
Many asked the same question again and again: how can I improve my oral English?
Honestly, the best way is to put one in a foreign country where English is the mother tongue and where there are few other Chinese (This is very important since if you live and study with many other Chinese, you will use Chinese more than English!). Of course, this is not a good suggestion for most of the ordinary Chinese.
Secondly, try to make a friend with a foreigner in China who can stay and talk with you at least 3 times a week for 3 to 5 hours.
Thirdly, try to find a good teacher of English (try to make a friend with him or her too!), whose English is good and you would be lucky if his/her pronunciation is also good. Attaining classes is important. However, try to find some chances to communicate with the teacher (in English of course!) in daily activities will be more helpful.
Last but really not the least, if you really set up your mind and none of the methods I mentioned above are available to you, there is another way: try to find every chance to talk with YOURSELF IN ENGLISH!
Some may think this is ridiculous! But it really works. As I mentioned before, the best way to practice oral English (or any language!) is try every chance to use it.
Of course, before you practice to talk with yourself, you should make some preparations. In other words, try to make a “foundation”, which means you must “input” a lot before you can “output” a little...
Something in details:
1. Read ALOUD some English material which is suitable for your level EVERY DAY for 30 minutes. While reading, you can follow Mr. Li Yang’s advice, that is, “to read as loud as possible, as fast as possible and as clear as possible”.
2. Memorize some materials (NCE is very, very good, by the way.). Remember: “input” is very important!
3. Try to listen to some materials, including films, TV programmes, tapes, etc.
If you can do according to the list FOR QUITE SOMETIME, then you can try to talk with yourself, that is, try to use English in your daily life. For example, if you are going to do some shopping, you can say something like this to yourself: “well, today, we will go to Walmart, or DA RUN FA to buy something. We need some vegetables (eggplants, potatoes,), some fruits (apples, peaches, watermelon….), and some bread. We also need some wine and beer…”
Remember, language is for thinking and communication. Try to use it if you really want to master it! GOOD LUCK!